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Jalen Williams Joins Elite Company With Star-Making Game 5 Performance

J-Dub had his moment when it mattered most.

Blake Silverman

Oklahoma City Thunder forward Williams reacts during the NBA Finals against the Indiana Pacers at Paycom Center
Oklahoma City Thunder forward Williams reacts during the NBA Finals against the Indiana Pacers at Paycom Center / Kyle Terada-Imagn Images
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Oklahoma City Thunder wing Jalen Williams was already an All-Star after his first appearance this season. But, if there was any debate whether he was a true star in the NBA, he hushed it with a 40-point game in the NBA Finals on Monday night.

Williams had 40 points, six rebounds and four assists in the Thunder's 120-109 win over the Indiana Pacers in Game 5, helping his team take a 3-2 lead in the series and move just one win from the NBA title.

Williams has now scored 25 or more points for his third NBA Finals game in a row, after scoring 26 points in Game 3 and 27 points in Game 4 in addition to his offensive explosion Monday. He became just the fifth player over the past 40 seasons to score 25 or more points in three straight NBA Finals games before the age of 25, joining some pretty elite company in Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant, Dwyane Wade and Shaquille O'Neal.

He also became one of the five youngest players to score 40 points in a Finals game according to ESPN's Zach Kram.

Williams has a chance to continue his hot stretch in Game 6, as the Thunder look to clinch the title at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis Thursday at 8:30 p.m. ET.

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Blake Silverman
BLAKE SILVERMAN

Blake Silverman is a contributor to the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Before joining SI in November 2024, he covered the WNBA, NBA, G League and college basketball for numerous sites, including Winsidr, SB Nation's Detroit Bad Boys and A10Talk. He graduated from Michigan State University before receiving a master's in sports journalism from St. Bonaventure University. Outside of work, he's probably binging the latest Netflix documentary, at a yoga studio or enjoying everything Detroit sports. A lifelong Michigander, he lives in suburban Detroit with his wife, young son and their personal petting zoo of two cats and a dog.

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